 Ms Angela Thoko Didiza, Prof Hellicy Ngambi & Dr Annieke Ravhudzulo  Prof and Mrs Makhanya with Ms Angela Thoko Didiza |
Unisa takes a stand again women and child abuse
On Thursday 3 December 2009, Unisa women and members of top management had the privilege of listening to Ms Angela Thoko Didiza who delivered a lively keynote address at a special lunch. The event, organised by the Unisa Women’s Forum and sponsored by the College of Economic and Management Sciences, was hosted to support the awareness campaign for the 16 days of activism against women and child abuse.
Prof Hellicy Ngambi, Executive Dean of the College of Economic and Management Sciences, opened the event, which was also attended by Prof Louis Molamu, Prof Mandla Makhanya, Dr Mala Singh and others.
Prof Ngambi outlined the awareness campaign for the 16 days of activism against women and child abuse as global, but added that South Africa has included the interests of children as part of the campaign. The College of Economic and Management Sciences specifically wishes to focus on creating ethical graduates, male and female, young and old, who will be responsible for their actions and not violate the rights of women and children. "We will fight abuse and we will succeed," said Prof Ngambi.
Former Minister Angela Thoko Didiza opened her speech with a quote from a poem by Peggy Seeger. The poem is about a girl who "wished she was a boy". Whenever the girl said she wanted to be an engineer, the stereotypical reaction from society was that she should stick to womanly pursuits. Didiza indicated that we are to blame for enforcing stereotypes when we raise our children. At this time of year, our country shows its collective outrage at the abuse against women and children, with events reported on a daily basis. Such acts often happen behind closed doors and we never hear about them. The call to action to fight gender violence (as men also get abused) is admirable: we should mobilise ourselves, we should raise our voices.
She mentioned the positive on-air radio campaign entitled "Bothers for life". She speculated that an increase in violence could be an indication of the bottled-up frustration of men not encouraged to express their emotion. Within the context of our new South Africa, we need to reflect on the journey so far and what has been achieved for women’s equality. Although women’s status in public life has been improved, there is still room for improvement on many fronts, including the academic sphere.
Duduza concluded that we need to strive for a society where we channel stereotypes. "We as women, need to be the first to construct a society where both men and women are equal," she said.
Prof Zodwa Motsa, Dr Anniekie Ravhudzulo and other members of the Unisa Women’s Forum added their voice of support to this call for action. |
